Is Microsoft Still Relevant?

Investors can’t help but wonder just how relevant Microsoft will be in the future amid all their missteps.

The latest comes in the form of a smartphone called the Kin. Microsoft pulled the plug on a new gadget less than 3 months after unveiling it.

Though the Kin received favorable reviews, the phones were hampered by high-priced data plans, and caused market confusion on the eve of the hotly anticipated Windows Phone 7 launch.

We have made the decision to focus on our Windows Phone 7 launch and we will not ship Kin in Europe this fall as planned," according to a statement from Microsoft. "Additionally, we are integrating our Kin team with the Windows Phone 7 team, incorporating valuable ideas and technologies from Kin into future Windows Phone releases. We will continue to work with Verizon in the U.S. to sell current Kin phones."

The move underscores the challenges facing Microsoft, which is scrambling to catch-up with Apple and other rivals dominating the market for handheld computers.

In April, Microsoft said it was shelving an internal project to develop a tablet PC similar to Apple's iPad.

* It may be a little dramatic but CNBC’s Dennis Kneale thinks Microsoft should break itself into parts. Of course this idea is purely hypothetical. Nonetheless, it is intriguing. Want to hear more? Watch the video now!

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